Strange Suspicions - Suspect RMT

[wildfire393]

This is the team I've been using on the Suspect ladder for a little bit now, with decent success (1500 average rating). Looking for some tips on how to make it better. Most of these sets are custom-tailored, but feel free to make suggestions.

Team At a Glance:

The Lead:

Garchomp (M) @ Expert Belt
Ability: Sand Veil
EVs: 102 HP/252 Atk/156 Spd
Adamant nature (+Atk, -SAtk)
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Roar

Here's an interesting concoction of mine. Max+ Attack with an Expert Belt allows Garchomp to OHKO ShucaTran and ScarfJirachi, as well as having a decent shot at OHKOing 248/12 Adamant Metagross (Standard Lead set, does 95-111%). Dragon Claw is for the obvious coverage. Stealth Rocks are a must on any team, especially with so many SR-weak Skymins going around. Roar is mostly filler, but it helps if a lead tries to set up on Garchomp. Considering changing it for either HP Grass, which would allow a 2HKO on 252/0 Swampert with average damage (does 50-58 per hit) or Fire Fang, which can 2HKO 252/0 Bronzong (but sadly does an absolute max of 50% to 252/0 Skarmory)
Speed allows it to outrun non-Scarfed Heatran and anything slower. Maxed attack for maxed power, and the HP EVs allow it to take an unboosted, non-STAB ice attack and survive, such as ScarfJirachi's Ice Punch, Swampert's Ice Beam, Ice Punch, or non-doubled Avalanche, or ScarfSkymin's HP Ice.
Expert Belt allows for a chance of OHKO on Metagross and can trick people into thinking this is a Choice Set.
Assuming he doesn't take a massive beating in the first few turns (which happens most of the time), he can take Fire or Electric attacks aimed at Skarmory, Fire attacks aimed at Magnezone, or Rock or Fire attacks aimed at Shaymin-S. He can also benefit from Tyranitar's Sandstorm.
---

The Sweeper:

Tyranitar (M) @ Babiri Berry
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Crunch
- Dragon Dance
- Stone Edge
- Taunt

Skarmory is incredibly common in the Suspect test, and this set takes huge advantage of that fact. Even with no Defense investment, Skarmory can take neutral or resisted Physical hits very well, so people are rarely hesitant to switch him into Tyranitar. And once he is in and sees a Dragon Dance, he will always try to Whirlwind (after all, Roost, Spikes, or a Flying attack are pretty much worthless at that point). Taunting him leaves him with only the option of a Flying attack as you continue to set up, and as it is resisted, it does less to him than it does to BulkyGyara, even factoring in Intimidate. Generally though, they switch out after being taunted, leaving a mighty +2 Tyranitar to wreak havoc across their team. With +2, Tyranitar outspeeds everything under Scarfed Max+ base 100s, including Scarfed Modest Latios/Gengar/Latias and Scarfed Adamant Garchomp and can easily rip many teams to shreds.
The move choice is still up for debate here. Dark + Rock gets great coverage, but unfortunately fails against Magnezone and especially Lucario. Unfortunately, losing Crunch forces me to rely on the less accurate Stone Edge against most Pokemon, which I dislike, and any coverage move has problems. Earthquake fails to hit the common Bronzong. Fire Punch leaves me with no option against Garchomp. Aqua Tail might be worthwhile, but that gives me two imperfect accuracy moves and again sticks me with Stone Edge against the Latis and Skymin. I'm open for suggestions on what move to pair here.
As for the EVs: Max+ Speed allows him to outrun anyone gunning for Adamant Tyranitar's Speed without a DD, Timid Lati@s after a DD, and anything up through Scarfed Neutral Lati@s after 2 DDs. Maxed attack for maximum sweeping potential, and the leftovers in HP. Babiri Berry lets this beat the still-common Scizor as well as taking less from Metagross and Jirachi.
Takes Fire moves and most Weaker Special moves aimed at Skarmory/Magnezone, as well as Dark/Ghost moves aimed at Rotom-H. Sets up Sandstorm for more residual pain and Garchomp support, but I try to keep him in the wings until later in the game so my Sandstorm doesn't wear down Skymin or help enemy Garchomps.
---

The Wall

Skarmory (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 HP/6 Spd/252 SDef
Careful nature (+SDef, -SAtk)
- Brave Bird
- Spikes
- Roost
- Whirlwind

Specially defensive Skarmory is a cold, mean-spirited bitch. He is capable of coming in on so much of the Metagame and laying down spikes, and an ill-prepared team will find its endgame to be a series of Whirlwinds reducing all of their grounded Pokemon to nothing.
Brave Bird because it actually does decent damage, capable of taking out Skymin who think they can stay in and stuff like Infernape on the switch-in, as well as dealing a decent chunk to Latios and Lucario.
The final 6 EVs are placed in Speed rather than defense so this can beat opposing Skarm to the WW, mostly because I hate Speed Ties.
Takes Ground and Grass moves aimed at Tyranitar, Dark and Ghost moves aimed at Rotom-H, Dragon moves aimed at Garchomp, and just generally whatever the hell I want because of Skarm's beastly defenses.
---
The What?

Magnezone @ Light Clay
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 172 HP/84 SAtk/252 SDef
Sassy nature (+SDef, -Spd)
- Light Screen
- Reflect
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Thunderbolt

This is an experiment of mine that I'm not sure of, but when it works it serves me very well. This Magnezone is less aimed at taking out Bronzong/Metagross/Skarmory, like the standard set is, and more aimed at exploiting the free turns that trapping a choiced steel gets you to set up the rest of the team for a sweep. The general gist is to come in on something like a Heatran Dragon Pulse/HP Ice, Scizor Bullet Punch, Jirachi Iron Head/Ice Punch/Thunderpunch, etc and set up Screens before finishing off the offending Steel. It can also do this to Skarmory, but Skarmory can outspeed and Roost to keep Thunderbolt from killing it until a Critical or Paralyze occurs, assuming he doesn't just switch out with Shed Shell. Light Screen is usually the priority due to the special attacking trend of most of the suspects, but Reflect is good at keeping Garchomp under control, and is generally the wiser choice if this is in on a Skarmory with an uncertain item. This also makes an excellent switch-in to choiced Latios, especially if they have already seen your Skarmory and are likely to throw out Thunderbolt over Draco Meteor, but he can take both nicely.
Thunderbolt hits all the steels I want hard enough, and HP Ice hits Dragons and Skymin, making it invaluable.
A high HP and Special Defense investment allows this to more effectively come in on Latios Thunderbolts/Draco Meteors and Skymin Air Slashes/Seed Flares (especially Air Slashes), since he has no form of recovery to help him with that. The Special Attack is just to make sure his attacks aren't beach balls and can get the job done.
Like Skarm, Magnezone happily takes Dragon, Ghost, Dark, Grass, Flying, Bug, etc attacks aimed at team members, but he has the added bonus of taking Electric/Rock attacks aimed at Skarm and Ice attacks aimed at Garchomp and Skymin.
---

The Psycho

Shaymin-s @ Petaya Berry
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 92 HP/166 Spd/252 SAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Substitute
- Seed Flare
- Air Slash
- Hidden Power [Fire]

This is another custom-build Suspect. Specs Skymin has devastating power, capable of 2HKOing even Blissey given a Special Defense fall with Seed Flare. However, his inflexibility of move choice is his downfall. SubLO Skymin has the ability to pretty much guarantee a KO on any team that lacks Blissey, but has a shorter lifespan due to LO and Sub taking chunks of health. This set attempts to combine the power and lastingness of SpecsSkymin with the ability of SubSkymin to beat its non-Blissey counters using Petaya Berry. Ideally I bring in Shaymin-S in the middle of the match, before I set up my Sandstorm but after I have scouted a good deal of the opponent's team. I bring it in, usually taking SR Damage, and set up a Sub on the switch out. If the opponent brings in their Priority/Scarf user, I promptly fry him as he breaks my sub and then switch out. Later, I bring Skymin in as another Pokemon dies and with SR damage, Petaya Berry triggers that turn. Given that I have eliminated their first and often only Pokemon able to hit Skymin first, this often lets me sweep through the remainder of the team. If they bring in a Pokemon slower than Skymin, I generally hit it hard and then try and sub down to a boost, hopefully keeping the Sub intact as I KO, allowing me to still beat the Priority/Scarfer.
EVs are chosen to outrun positive 115s and maximize attacking power, with the rest dumped into HP for a little more survivability. With a reflect up, Skymin can often keep a Sub through Scizor's Bullet Punch, which can spell game over. It also allows me to survive ScarfMin's Air Slash with Light Screen up and KO back with my own (with the Petaya Boost), assuming I can avoid the Flinch.
Skymin is unfortunately not able to come in on many attacks not named Earthquake aimed at Tyranitar/Magnezone, but he still manages to raise hell.
HP Fire is chosen as the final coverage move over Earth Power, as Skarmory and Bronzong are much more common than Heatran in this Metagame, and Heatran invites Garchomp or Tyranitar to come in on a fire move (or Magnezone if he HP Ices).
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The Glue

Rotom-h @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 HP/252 Spd/252 SAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Thunderbolt
- Trick
- Overheat
- Hidden Power [Ice]

I use this thing on almost every one of my teams, as nothing else deals with so many common threats with just one set. In the normal metagame, he is capable of shutting down Dragon Dance Gyarados, Swords Dance Lucario, and Swords Dance Scizor without breaking a sweat. In suspect, he gets even better, as he outruns Swords Dance Garchomp and can nail him with a HP Ice. If Garchomp is of the standard Yache variant, it at least forces him to Outrage, which lets Magnezone, Skarmory, or Skymin to come in and finish the job. He also outruns Latios, Latias, and Skymin and can hit them all with a super-effective HP Ice or shut down a Calm Minding/Recovering Lati with Trick. Trick is great for crippling Blissey and Skarmory.
Takes Fighting attacks aimed at any of my Pokemon, as well as being able to take a Flying attack aimed at Skymin, a Bug attack aimed at Tyranitar, a Ground attack aimed at Tyranitar or Magnezone, or a predicted Explosion from anything.
---

So that's the team. Generally early I try to lay entry hazards with Garchomp and Skarmory and hopefully get Magnezone in to lay some screens, at which point Skymin takes a run at the opponent's team. Most of the things that can take Skymin down become set-up bait for Tyranitar, which then leads to the second part of my sweep. Rotom-H and Skarmory fill in the gaps, being able to stop most of the threats in the metagame from sweeping this team in return.

 

[SlottedPig]

Mamoswine can deal a large amount of damage to your team, as only Skarmory and Rotom-Appliance can afford to take his STAB attacks. If it wields a Life Orb or Expert Belt, Garchomp and Skymin are going down the drain if you send them in, taking OHKOs from Ice Shard, and the slower Tyranitar and Magnezone meet real doom with Earthquake. Skarmory, due to having lack of as many defensive EVs as usual, cannot function well against it, possibly being 2HKOd by Life Orb, Adamant, 252 EV Stone Edge, leaving only Rotom-H as a possible counter. However, it can be outpredicted (and Mamoswine expects Overheat a mile away) so smart switching can cut the toaster's Special Attack considerably.

To remedy this, you can switch Tyranitar's Babiri Berry to a Shuca Berry. Magnezone takes Scizor on fine, and most players won't waste a turn Pursuiting Tyranitar (unless he's low on health) due to the resistance, while you can easily escape the grasp of a Bullet Punch. Tyranitar isn't OHKOd by Choice Band Adamant 252 Mamoswine Earthquake, thanks to Shuca Berry, and Dragon Dance ensures you can lay down a hard hit.

 

[MetaNite]

Mamoswine will murder you. You might say Rotom-H can Overheat it, but most of the time you're just giving it a free switch in with Thunderbolt. Skarmory can do little to no damage back, and is easily countered.

A few ways to deal with this:

Give Garchomp Yache Berry. This is very helpful, letting you survive an Ice Shard to strike back. Expert Belt isn't very useful anyway.

Another idea, is to give Tyranitar Shuca Berry. Although this may seem strange, Scizor is of no concern to your team since you have Magnezone AND Skarmory. Shuca probably lets you survive an Earthquake from ScarfChomp as well, which is always helpful with it so omnipresent.

Still, another solution is to make Magnezone a Choice Scarfer. I don't recommend this but it is always an option. Just be sure to give it Flash Cannon. You could also replace Magnezone with Scizor, but then you are without Dual Screens or a trapper. Like I said though, with Skarmory Scizor shouldn't be a huge problem.

I don't see any other big problem for you. Good luck!

 

[Tsubasa-kun]

Your team looks good, i just don't think it's a good idea a SubPetaya skymin with sandstorm.

If you want a different Skymin set, you can use a Subs + Growth set with leftovers to avoid sands. Air Slash 2KHO scizor anyway so he can't switch in.

and i really LOVE you magnezone set, congratz

 

[wildfire393]

Mamoswine can deal a large amount of damage to your team, as only Skarmory and Rotom-Appliance can afford to take his STAB attacks. If it wields a Life Orb or Expert Belt, Garchomp and Skymin are going down the drain if you send them in, taking OHKOs from Ice Shard, and the slower Tyranitar and Magnezone meet real doom with Earthquake. Skarmory, due to having lack of as many defensive EVs as usual, cannot function well against it, possibly being 2HKOd by Life Orb, Adamant, 252 EV Stone Edge, leaving only Rotom-H as a possible counter. However, it can be outpredicted (and Mamoswine expects Overheat a mile away) so smart switching can cut the toaster's Special Attack considerably.

To remedy this, you can switch Tyranitar's Babiri Berry to a Shuca Berry. Magnezone takes Scizor on fine, and most players won't waste a turn Pursuiting Tyranitar (unless he's low on health) due to the resistance, while you can easily escape the grasp of a Bullet Punch. Tyranitar isn't OHKOd by Choice Band Adamant 252 Mamoswine Earthquake, thanks to Shuca Berry, and Dragon Dance ensures you can lay down a hard hit.

Mamoswine will murder you. You might say Rotom-H can Overheat it, but most of the time you're just giving it a free switch in with Thunderbolt. Skarmory can do little to no damage back, and is easily countered.

A few ways to deal with this:

Give Garchomp Yache Berry. This is very helpful, letting you survive an Ice Shard to strike back. Expert Belt isn't very useful anyway.

Another idea, is to give Tyranitar Shuca Berry. Although this may seem strange, Scizor is of no concern to your team since you have Magnezone AND Skarmory. Shuca probably lets you survive an Earthquake from ScarfChomp as well, which is always helpful with it so omnipresent.

Still, another solution is to make Magnezone a Choice Scarfer. I don't recommend this but it is always an option. Just be sure to give it Flash Cannon. You could also replace Magnezone with Scizor, but then you are without Dual Screens or a trapper. Like I said though, with Skarmory Scizor shouldn't be a huge problem.

I don't see any other big problem for you. Good luck!

I have found a little trouble against Mamoswine, but generally good prediction can beat him. Shuca on Tyranitar is worth looking at, but generally Tyranitar will come in on something it can DD against.
Additionally, if Mamo switches in to Skymin he's either running into a sub or a fatal Seed Flare/HP Fire. Mamo can mess up many members of my team, but he has a hard time switching in to any one of them. Additionally, Jolly Mamo LO Stone Edge only does 32-38% to 252/0 Skarm, meaning it is generally safe to stay in and stall him out on LO damage or set up Spikes. As for other suggested solutions:
Yache Chomp: Then I lose the ability to OHKO lead Metagross, which I very much like. It also stops me from being able to 2HKO Swampert/Bronzong if I switch roar to HP Grass/Fire Fang.
Shuca Ttar: Yes, Magnezone can come in on the predicted Bullet Punch, trap him, and kill him, but then I have to deal find the opportunity to get Ttar back in to get a DD, and if I already showed taunt they won't make the mistake of trying to stop him with Skarm again, costing me that extra potential dance. Also, with so many Skarms, entry hazard damage can really rack up, which can shorten my sweeping potential.
Scarf Magnezone: In that case I lose my ability to screen, which I really like Magnezone for. I'd sooner swap Magnezone out for DS Bronzong, who counters Mamo pretty hard.

Your team looks good, i just don't think it's a good idea a SubPetaya skymin with sandstorm.

If you want a different Skymin set, you can use a Subs + Growth set with leftovers to avoid sands. Air Slash 2KHO scizor anyway so he can't switch in.

and i really LOVE you magnezone set, congratz

Ideally I pull the SubPetaya sweep before I attempt to sweep with Tyranitar, meaning there shouldn't be sandstorm going when I try the SubPetaya strategy. However, even if it is, Skymin can manage.
I considered Sub/Growth, but that leaves Skymin with only two moves. Even with three moves I often lament not having Earth Power for complete coverage. I can't see dropping either Air Slash or Seed Flare, as they are really just too good, but losing HP Fire means that Skymin really can't deal with any steel that isn't neutral to Grass or Flying, even if he manages to get +2 Special attack. And if I run just Growth, I leave him too vulnerable to scarfed or priority switchins.

 

[wildfire393]

Bump for more help on this.

 

[august]

Hm, why a -Speed nature on Magnezone? I find it useless to use a -Speed nature on even things like Curselax, because you never know when someone can use the something with a lower base speed and come in and KO you, as opposed to you KOing them. Obviously not a text book situation, but what is a -Spe nature doing for you anyway?

Secondly, I think Babiri might be a little overdoing it on TTar. You already have 3 solid steel switchins, and Magnezone is trapping CBScizor who is forced to Bullet Punch if it wants to kill you. Scarf Chomp is running rampant in the metagame right now (rightfully so) and this TTar set takes advantage of that.

Tyranitar (M) @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge

This will never be OHKO'd by Scarf Chomps EQ thanks to Shuca Berry and you can easily Dragon Dance again, followed by a Dragon Claw to OHKO. When I used this before Chomp was banned, some users were even cocky enough to Swords Dance after they switched in on my Dragon Dance, and I was able to escape un harmed and proceed to sweep the rest of the team.

I also agree that Mamoswine is nothing to worry about at all. Adamant LO Swine manages 41% at the most against your Skarm and Blizzard manages 40% max. You might want to consider a few Defense EVs to avoid potentially getting 3HKO'd though, it may help sometime.

 

[wildfire393]

Hm, why a -Speed nature on Magnezone? I find it useless to use a -Speed nature on even things like Curselax, because you never know when someone can use the something with a lower base speed and come in and KO you, as opposed to you KOing them. Obviously not a text book situation, but what is a -Spe nature doing for you anyway?

Secondly, I think Babiri might be a little overdoing it on TTar. You already have 3 solid steel switchins, and Magnezone is trapping CBScizor who is forced to Bullet Punch if it wants to kill you. Scarf Chomp is running rampant in the metagame right now (rightfully so) and this TTar set takes advantage of that.

Tyranitar (M) @ Shuca Berry
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 4 HP/252 Atk/252 Spd
Jolly nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge

This will never be OHKO'd by Scarf Chomps EQ thanks to Shuca Berry and you can easily Dragon Dance again, followed by a Dragon Claw to OHKO. When I used this before Chomp was banned, some users were even cocky enough to Swords Dance after they switched in on my Dragon Dance, and I was able to escape un harmed and proceed to sweep the rest of the team.

I also agree that Mamoswine is nothing to worry about at all. Adamant LO Swine manages 41% at the most against your Skarm and Blizzard manages 40% max. You might want to consider a few Defense EVs to avoid potentially getting 3HKO'd though, it may help sometime.

Whoops, that should be a -Attack nature, it's a holdover from when I had Bronzong in that slot.

Babiri Berry on Tyranitar helps against more than just Scizor. It makes it so that Metagross cannot OHKO with Meteor Mash (or even 2HKO with Mash + BP), allowing me to take him out with two Crunches if he's near full health. It makes it so that Magnezone cannot OHKO with Flash Cannon, allowing me to take him out with two Stone Edges. It makes it so that Jirachi cannot OHKO with Iron Head, allowing me to finish off a wounded one with Crunch. It also stops Bronzong from being able to OHKO with Gyro Ball.
Also, Taunt is really useful on the set. It means that I can set up on defensive Rotom-A as they try to Will-o-Wisp and beat the common Skarmory switch-in. If I were to drop it though, Dragon Claw is a decent suggestion to beat Garchomp and hit the Latis (which I normally just crunch). But I'd want to pair it with Fire Punch, not Earthquake, as I need a way to hit the common Bronzong and Stone Edge hits Heatran currently anyways.

 

[august]

I don't see why stopping Metagross from Meteor Mashing you to OHKO is so important with Skarmory, Rotom H, and Magnezone. +1 Earthquake does 72-85% to Metagross anyway, and if it was the lead it'll more than likely be at low health from Chomp anyway. ScarfGross gets trapped + set up on by Magnezone and eventually KO'd. Magnezone doesn't OHKO with Flash Cannon anyway. In fact, it only does 51-60% even with 4/0 and no Special Defense investment anyway. Not to mention its outsped after a Dragon Dance anyway.

Most Skarm on suspect are special defenseive variants as well. TTar does 56% minimum after a Dragon Dance to 252/0 Skarm, so even if it chooses to phaze you (which is the only way it won't get beat) it'll be easy picking for 3 of your other mons. I'm still trying to figure out why Bronzong and Jirachi are important enough to warrant Babiri Berry, seeing as Skarm destroys Bronzong and Magnezone traps Jirachi and sets up the screens and KOs, which makes TTars job even easier? Sorry if it sounds like I'm being an ass but I don't see any reason at all to run Babiri Berry when everything you mention that warrants the use of it is taken out by the rest of your team.

 

[wildfire393]

I don't see why stopping Metagross from Meteor Mashing you to OHKO is so important with Skarmory, Rotom H, and Magnezone. +1 Earthquake does 72-85% to Metagross anyway, and if it was the lead it'll more than likely be at low health from Chomp anyway. ScarfGross gets trapped + set up on by Magnezone and eventually KO'd. Magnezone doesn't OHKO with Flash Cannon anyway. In fact, it only does 51-60% even with 4/0 and no Special Defense investment anyway. Not to mention its outsped after a Dragon Dance anyway.

Most Skarm on suspect are special defenseive variants as well. TTar does 56% minimum after a Dragon Dance to 252/0 Skarm, so even if it chooses to phaze you (which is the only way it won't get beat) it'll be easy picking for 3 of your other mons. I'm still trying to figure out why Bronzong and Jirachi are important enough to warrant Babiri Berry, seeing as Skarm destroys Bronzong and Magnezone traps Jirachi and sets up the screens and KOs, which makes TTars job even easier? Sorry if it sounds like I'm being an ass but I don't see any reason at all to run Babiri Berry when everything you mention that warrants the use of it is taken out by the rest of your team.

The thing is, with Skarmory, and thus Spikes, being so common on Suspect, I really can't afford to bring Tyranitar in and out multiple times. I generally want to bring him in ONCE and sweep through a team. The set I have listed does that better than anything else I have tried. Without Babiri Berry, if the opponent has a Scizor or Scarfed Jirachi waiting in the wings, I'm forced to switch out to magnezone (who may not be alive at this point as Ttar is my late game sweeper and Magnezone has no recovery), which means they both take another round of Spikes/SR damage.